Dark Messiah scenario
The Dark Messiah scenario is a stand-alone scenario in the Heroes of Might and Magic V expansion Tribes of the East. It tells a condensed form of the story of Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. Walkthrough His master, Phenrig, sends Sareth to Stonehelm, to a powerful wizard named Menelag, who needs the Shantiri Crystal to locate the Skull of Shadows. He tells the succubus Xana to protect Sareth, and magically binds her to his spirit. Approaching Stonehelm, Sareth defeats a group of necromancers, and learns that the city is under attack. He defeats another necromancer army that sieges the city, and learns that the necromancer Arantir is behind the attacks. Menelag's niece Leanna thinks that Arantir is the Dark Messiah, the half-demon that will free the demons of Sheogh from their prison. Menelag scoffs at this. Shortly afterwards, Menelag is killed by a necromancer. Sareth and Leanna capture a ship and sail east, towards an archeological dig where the Skull of Shadows is located. On the way, their ship is attacked by yet another necromancer. They can also sail to the northern island, to visit the Monastery of the Brethren of Elrath, and the Arcane Laboratory, both of which will provide Sareth with reinforcements if he brings them an Edge of Balance and a Trident of Titans, respectively. Both artifacts are located nearby, but are heavily guarded. When they arrive at the dig site, they learn that orcs have attacked the camp, and that several of the men are trapped by a paokai. Heading south, Sareth manages to free them, and they join him. Using the Shantiri Crystal on the nearby mechanism, Sareth opens the path to the underground temple where the Skull of Shadows can be found. By worshipping at the three Aspects of Asha (all of which are heavily guarded), he opens the path to the Skull. When he does so, Aratrok, chief and shaman of the Redskull Clan, appears. He can sense a demonic taint approaching the skull, and won't let Sareth pass until he has beaten Aratrok in combat. When Sareth picks up the skull, Kha-Beleth appears to him, and tells him he has been locked up for ten centuries, waiting for his son, Sareth the Dark Messsiah, to free him. Arantir the necromancer shows up, and to avoid Kha-Beleth being freed, he slays Sareth and takes the skull. Sareth wakes up some time later. Xana used the skull, and her own powers, to raise Sareth from the dead, but he is far more demonic now than before he died. Making his way to the surface, he decides to follow Arantir and take the skull back. The town of Stonehelm is now gone from the map, a pile of rubble in its place. On the way west, to the Necropolis Nar-Ankar, Sareth can visit the Guild of the Unchained on the smaller island, where a group of demons will join him if he gives them a Helm of Chaos. The helm can now be found in the underground he just left. After conquering the town of Nar-Ankar, he receives the key to the green border guard, allowing him to follow Arantir through the one-way portal. Leanna is here, captured by Arantir. While following him, Sareth is ambushed by other necromancers, eager to protect their leader. Finally, Sareth catches up to the necromancer, ending his life and taking the Skull of Shadows. As he stands before Kha-Beleth's prison, the Demon Sovereign asks Sareth to free him and his demonic hordes, Leanna wants him to take the skull and leave, and Xana wants him to leave Kha-Beleth, so she and Sareth can rule the world instead. If Sareth chooses not to free Kha-Beleth, the Demon Sovereign tells Sareth that he is weak like his mother Isabel, and that as an immortal being, he will get his revenge sooner or later. If Sareth chooses to free him, Kha-Beleth tells Xana that she will be tortured for her lack of faith, and Sareth that they will rule the world as father and son. Strategy Sareth starts out in the northwestern corner as a third-level knight with basic counterstrike, logistics, Destructive Magic, attack, and enlightenment, and the intelligence subskill. His specialty is Wizard's Apprentice, which is what gives him enlightenment and intelligence. He is equipped with the Shantiri Crystal, a plot item with no in-game effect, and an army of 30 footmen, 45 archers, and 15 mages. When he captures Stonehelm, he gets reinforcements in the form of conscripts, footmen, and mages. He should purchase some war machines, and visit the mage guild for spells. When they reach the ship, the army is reinforcced with marksmen, squires, and conscripts. At the Monastery of the Brethren of Elrath, marksmen and cavaliers will join his army, while the Arcane Laboratory will give him archmages and titans. When landing at the dig site, the battle mages there will join him. The men trapped by the paokai, who join Sareth when freed, include archmages. When Sareth is killed, he is resurrected as a Demon Lord, with the Dark Messiah specialty. He has the same skills as he started with, and a single succubus mistress. After his first turn ends, he levels up to the same level as he was before he died, but can pick other skills. After defeating the cyclops guarding the exit, he receives an army of various inferno creatures. If he delivers the Helm of Chaos to the Guild of the Unchained, he will receive an army of high-level Inferno creatures, including pit lords. Note that he cannot visit the Monastery of the Brethren of Elrath or the Arcane Laboratory while he's a demon, or the Guild of the Unchained while human. Notes The scenario was developed by Julien Pirou for the collector's edition of Heroes V. Pirou had previously created the Legends of the Ancients mod, and later worked as a writer at Might & Magic: Heroes VI, Might & Magic X: Legacy, and Might & Magic: Heroes VII. Category:Tribes of the East scenarios